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Don't Ask
Bridge - Star of Mercy --- :The hatchway opens up to a small metal platform, which overlooks a compact command center. Light filters out from hidden coves, providing an even illumination across the bridge consoles. A rainbow of telltales and monitors add a touch of color, breathing life into the functional and utilitarian space. A few steps down, the bridge workstations are arranged in a rough semicircle, following the shark nosed form of the ship's bow. Two stations face forward and are centered beneath the main canopy. The other two workstations face the port and starboard, one on each side of the bridge. The space is tight, with barely enough room to move when all the stations are occupied. --- The lights are set at their dimmest level, simulating night and signifying the last watch of the day. Jest is leaning over the communications console, typing in a message. Her backside waggles as she is, apparently, distracted by doing this. Cathal peeks his head in through the hatch after it opens, probably looking for Jest. Strangely though, at the sight of her waggling behind, he just quietly observes for a few moments before entering with a quiet cough. Jest looks over her shoulder at him and smiles, "Cathal! Just the man I was looking for. Or, rather, prepping to message." She straightens and turns to him. Cathal grins a little, "If it's about that stink I left in the bathroom; I didn't realize the refried beans were a week old, alright?" Jest shudders, "Yes. That. We'll leave that alone for now, shall we?" Her nose wrinkles in memory. "No, remember that job I told you about?" She smiles. "Listenin' to some jerks talk, right?" The Lunite has a razor-sharp mind for details. "It has been... amended," Jest sits on the console. "Apparently, there's no need to listen. It's been determined that the person already has what our client wants. Now it's a matter of getting it from him." Cathal points at his shotgun, a hopeful look on his face, "The fun way, right?" "I'd like to think we can be a little subtle," Jest drawls, "But? If that fails, then yes. Your fun way." Cathal punches the air with a triumphant noise, "Alright! I can probably fail at subtlety pretty good. Who's our target, boss?" Jest snickers at him and rolls her eyes, "Ah. It's a man named Gunther. He probably won't have the goods on him, but that doesn't matter." She runs her fingers through her hair. "So. We should probably find him wasndering the Warren." Cathal nods, checking over his limited gear. "So what's the angle we're gonna work? You gonna try yer 'come thither' routine on him, or we gonna follow him around and hope he leads us to...whatever it is we're stealin'. Say, what -are- we stealin'?" "He's a merchant there. So, chances are we are going to have to get him somewhere isolated. Come thither sounds like a good start, don't you think? I'll lead him away, you be waiting at the alley?" Jest tilts her head. "And it should be a medium sized package." Cathal cracks a few golf-ball sized knuckles, "Good plan. Find one with a dumpster I can hide behind or somethin'. It'll mask my scent." "I can see that," Jest drawls. She pauses and gestures, "Anything you need to do before we go?" Cathal shadowboxes a little, shaking his head. "One guy, shouldn't be too tricky. And shit, I wouldn't be surprised if he's half dropped his pants by the time you him into the alley. Should be nice an' easy." "Your confidence in me is gratifying, dear." Jest drawls, half-lidding her eyes. Then she makes her way towards the aft. "Onwards then." Cathal takes up his place in the mismatched pair, shuffling his bulk clumsily after Jest's tiny, graceful frame. The hatch slides to the left, allowing passage into the ship's airlock. Aurora Strand ''' - Shadowheart --- :The massive framework construct of the aerie, where ships used to land back in Cabrerra's day, has toppled over the thoroughfare known as Aurora Strand. Before the fall of Tomin Kora in the aftermath of Majordomo Grim's rampage, the spacious avenue had been home to numerous neon-lit businesses. Now, it's a boulevard of broken hovercars, skeletal remains of crashed spacecraft, and drifts of rubble. The remnants of the old Tomin Kora spaceport, cracked from impact by the aerie's collapse, loom nearby. --- The front door to the Warren is relatively busy. People walk back and forth and jostle. A few of them take that as an offense and bring loud shouts to the cacophony but peace is more or less maintained. Cathal works his fingers through brass knuckles, giving a few people his patented ol' man stinkeye. He doesn't have a lawn, so this is as it good as it gets. Jest angles close to Cathal and nods across the way, "That looks like our fellow, I believe." She's indicating a rather burly fellow by a general store. The man is no slouch, perhaps six foot tall and built for the streets of Tomin. "Oo, I like him. Looks like he might got some fight in 'im. Say, before we do our thing, I got an idea..." Not a man famous for his ideas, Cathal at least tries now and then. Jest looks up to the man, tilting her head, "Shoot?" Cathal says, "Well, might have to at some point, but I'm hopin' not. Stop tryin' to guess and just listen!" Cathal is truly oblivious, sometimes. "He don't look like the sorta fellow I can shut up with one good hit, and we ain't in the mood for him calling in any help...so here's my thought: Might be we don't show our hand too soon, aye? If us two jump him, he'll probably raise hell and get us all sorts o' attention...but if some old, drunken bum threatens a pretty young woman's virtue, well, the merchant there might just wanna impress you and take the vile beast down 'imself, y'follow? Victor and spoils an' all that."" Jest's brow furrows. "So have him start the fight?" She says slowly, getting to the heart of the issue. "I go over and flirt, walk a bit away. You 'jump' me in his viewing?" Cathal shrugs his refridgerator shoulders, "Sure, or jus' have me interrupt you two playin' kissy face. Whichever you find easier to pull off- I can act drunk and belligerent pretty easy, believe it or not." Jest chews her lip and nods, "You still want me to try and get him to the alley?" "Might keep it quieter. When we get the fight on, you want me to just rough him up a little until we can get a weapon on him, or would you like him good and soft before we start askin' the hard questions?" "Let's see how much of a tough guy he is first, eh? I trust you'll be able to judge whether he's the type to talk easy or not?" Jest smiles at him and winks. Without further ado, she starts angling towards the waiting Gunther. Cathal jerks his head towards a nearby alleyway, "Mr. Trap will go hide in there, Miss Bait. Don't get too distracted with the sculpted hunk over there and forget why we're here, neh?" He scrunches up his face in that hideous wink, shuffing off towards the alley. Jest's laughter can be heard, followed quickly by a sad little mocking sigh for the admonitions. She sets those hips of hers into her best saunter as goes. Meanwhile, over at the booth...the successful and muscular Gunther sends another satisfied customer on his way. He's dressed in a ludicrously tight black bodyglove, sporting a suspiciously glittery vest overtop it. Alas, he has elected to wear no additional pants, glittered or otherwise. His crotch appears to have been poorly stuffed, and he takes the break in customers to surreptitiously glance at himself in a mirror concealed inside the booth. He gives the image a little 'come thither' nod of his own, winking at his reflection. Jest stops a couple yards away and tilts her head to admire the backside so revealed. She smiles slowly, then shakes her head as she angles over, "Excuse me?" She says, voice low. She places her hand on her hip, shoulders going back to emphasize feminine attributes. Cathal disappears into the shadowy alleyway, scratching his crotch as he goes. Gunther manages to tear his eyes away from...well, his eyes. They seem glad to make the sacrifice, as they roam quite shamelessly over the newly arrived figure of Jest. "I certainly -would-." He declares, with far more feeling than sense. He probably doesn't even know what he means by it. "Looking to have your hands on something, Doll?" Jest laughs softly, "That depends, Sir, on what is ready to fill my hands." She tilts her head and lets her eyes brazenly go over him, "What are you selling, then?" The merchant of questionable reputation attempts to lean suggestively forward, managing only to smack his forehead off the low-hanging ceiling of the booth. After a few moments of struggling not to tear up, he tries again- this time successfully poking his head out and saying with a waggle of his precisely plucked eyebrows, "Anything that'll make a party, Sweetcheeks." Jest raises her hands to her mouth, coyly hiding the smile on her face. "Well? What if I want to party with someone ....special?" She drops her eyes to his crotch and then back to his face. Gunther slides a few fingers, uh, "seductively" over his form, pausing a little to circle where unfortunately a nipple is very visible. His lips split into a wide grin, revealing even, perfectly spaced white teeth. "There's someone special right here in this booth, and there's plenty of room..." From the back, the exasperated voice of his forgotten assistant replies immediately, "-No there isn't-." Jest bites her lower lip and makes a slight sound of approval in the back of her throat, "Well? There's an alley-way right there that has even more room." She leans forward. The fine, ravishing stallion of a man lets out a little laugh himself, as if Jest has fallen into some cunning web of his. "Anything's good enough for you, Tasty...uh...lumps." He really doesn't have a large store of pet names, apparently. He calls over his shoulder, "Boy! You're in charge." The 'boy' murmurs almost inaudibly, "...if only." Thankfully his boss misses the comment, too busy spraying himself with some sickening fragrance and sauntering out of the booth. He offers Jest a meaty but...apparently waxed forearm. "Shall we, my little honey...uh...weasel?" He nods in approvement of his own creation, clearly saving that winner for future use. Jest takes his arm and nuzzles close. She dips her head to his shoulder, her own shoulders shaking just slightly as she tries to hold back laughter. She swallows it back and looks up at him, gaze smoldering, "Baby, we shall indeed." She purrs. Gunther looks down at his trophy as he leads the way towards that most classy of hookup locations, the random alley. He seems to notice the shaking, smirking his understanding, "I can feel how you tremble with lust for me, my Sugarhole." He gives another little laugh, prancing his poncy behind onwards towards hairy, smelly justice. "Surely you are used to that, my big throbbing steel piece of loving?" Jest gives him her best, 'take me now' eyes. Her lips twitch, but she manages to keep them under control, just barely. She reaches out a hand to grope his backside with a quick squeeze. The young lovers step into the alleyway. Narrow but rather long, it appears entirely empty. A lone dumpster slumps against one wall, as if the weight off Tomin Kora's trash has reduced it to hopelessness. It also smells suspiciously of Cathal, which cannot help. Once inside, Gunther attempts to press manfully up against Jest. It's not something he pulls off particularly well. He utters several entirely unprintable promises of what sort of sexual acts he wants to engage in with Jest, and curiously he seems to get a few of the details wrong. "Oh, yeah," Jest murmurs, hands going out to steady the man. Just in case, "And after your toes are behind your ears?" She leans up and kisses him. "Tell me about that...." The Cathal-Dumpster's lid lifts slightly, and the great ox of a Lunite comes leaping out. He catches his foot, stumbling across the ground and slamming his shoulder into the far wall. It was all part of the act, you can be sure. He pulls himself to his feet, swaying unsteadily and squinting at the entwined pair. "Wo-ah, lookee what we gots ourselves here." Cathal must hold back in his daily life, because the hideous leer he pulls his face into could turn the unsuspecting into stone. He smacks his lips, stumbling closer to Jest and her dreamboat. "Hey fella, why don't you introduce me to your girl. Mmmm. Nice bit of tail on her, neh? Wouldn't mind gettin' myself a little squeeeeze." Gunther untangles himself from his arm candy, putting up his well-manicured dukes. He wrinkles his nose at the twisted creature that has been vomited forth from the dumpster. Looking over each shoulder for help that isn't there, he takes a few steps backward, flexing as much as possible. "Uh...you better s-s-stay back! I kn-kn-know -Kung Fu-!" For the record...he does not. Jest gasps, "Oh! Thrusty-Love! Ewwww." She draws back as if cowering. Cathal staggers relentlessly on, laughing harshly at the man's claim. "You go ahead an' know Kung Fu, me- I'm gonna know yer girl somethin' fierce." Gunther's baby blues flick from the deranged homeless man to his new source of potential tail and back. He takes a few deep breaths, talking quietly to himself and trying not to tremble too much, "I can do this: I'm awesome." For the record...he is not. He takes a few hesitant steps forward, trying some sort of spinning, whirling ballet move that's supposed to be a kick. He may not know Kung Fu, but he appears to have watched a lot of bad holographic remakes of some classic films. Jest winces, "Don't hurt him too badly!" She calls out, biting her lower lip. Cathal growls out, "I won't...", reaching out and catching the man's foot with an amused sort of ease. Held suspended on one leg, his opponent squeaks out the same reassurance to Jest. So sweet of him. The Lunite aims throws two brutal kicks from the same side, the first aiming for the open and very prominent target of Gunther's crotch, the second for his sculpted and probably very smooth abs. "Oh, god," Jest chokes and closes her eyes. When she opens them, she's looking at the area around them, making sure that no help is on its way. It doesn't appear to be just yet. Gunther's eyes go glassy from the first kick, and the second tears him from Cathal's grasp with the distinctive sound of ribs cracking. He's sent sailing backwards into the wall, smacking his head against it and sliding down into a trembling pile of Fail. Jest starts forward, crossing to the man, "Is he out?" Cathal lifts a foot, prepared to stomp the man...but he lets it settle to the ground. "...or close to it. Woman, you sure this is the right guy?" "Let's find out," Jest murmurs. She crouches in front of the fallen man and adopts her best terrified expression. Well. It's not likely her best. THe knowledge of her audience gives her some pause, "Baby! Baby! Can you hear me?" Gunther cracks open a slit of an eye, cracking his perfectly-aligned smile. "Did...did I get him? You see my...moves?" Cathal looks on, vaguely disgusted. "Honey, no. He....he brought seven others! They say they are going to kill us if you don't tell him where you stashed Smith's order. Do you know what he's talking about? Where is it?" Jest whimpers. She waggles her backside as if to tell Cathal to keep in character. Cathal jumps a little before remembering his role in all this, "...right, yeah. Smith's order! I wanna know where it is or I'll kill you." He pulls out another famously hideous scowl. Gunther sputters, shaking his carefully coifed head vigorously, "No no no, I can't! Smith's order...he'd kill m-" The bottom of Cathal's boot interrupts the man's blubbering, shattering his nose in a facial fireworks display of splintering bone and dripping blood. Skipping Jest's pose like the cold-hearted killer he is, the Lunite roars down at the man, "He'll kill you? -I'll- kill you, motherfucker!" Jest yelps and draws back, curling into herself, "...please don't kill us!" She wails. Cathal points backwards at Jest as he looms over the wounded drug dealer, "Shut up, bitch! And you, Nancy-boy...if you don't tell me where the goddamned order is, I'm going to feed you pieces of yourself until you start shittin' them and I gotta start all over again!" Gunther blubbers helplessly a little more before managing to gasp out between sobs and retches, "...it's...it's in a stall, okay? A-a...stall three down fr-from mine...with the...with the..." He colours, but it's barely noticeable through the blood. "...m-m-male curiousity." Jest scrambles backwards, and finds her feet. She wipes her hands on her jeans and gives Cathal a little nod. There is a vague sort of sympathy mixed in her expression. If Cathal can read it, it might indicate that while she believes Gunther needs to be knocked out, she isn't a fan of hurting him tooo badly. Then again, whose to say Cathal is paying attention to her expressions. Cathal nods back, laying a quick left hook across the jaw and sending Gunther into the sweet embrace of unconsciousness. The Lunite straightens, shaking out his hand. "Shit girl, next time you gotta reel me in a better fight. Don't know what ya saw in him." "A job that needed to get done?" Jest arches her brows up. She smiles and then whimpers, humor held back. "Sugar-hole. Good god." She starts for the alley way, "You know where the stall he is talking about is?" Cathal says, "What? You figure the dirty old man's addicted to pornography? That's...racism, or something." Cathal tramps along next to her, dusting some stray garbage from his ass." "I think that you are very aware of your surroundings, Handsome," Jest says comfortingly, "Ah, you missed a spot." She points to where trash yet lingers. Cathal swats half a mushed rat carcass from the small of his back, turning back onto the street and eyeballing stalls, "...drugs, knives, drugs, -hats-? Drugs again...hey, there's porn...but that's more of Aadzrian and Tirax's- aw shit, you don't think...?" "Don't think what?" Jest murmurs, raising her brows. Cathal coughs a little, gesturing at the place, "...well, you don't think the uh..." He squints at the name on the stall. "..."Fairy Tale" there is the place he meant, do ya?" Jest stifles a smirk, "Male curiousities indeed." She angles towards the stall and, garnering a few odd looks as she does. Cathal falls in step, earning a few disgusted looks from the patrons already present. He leans in to murmur to Jest, "How we playin' this one, boss?" "Find the box, obviously," Jest murmurs, "And? If need be?" She gives him a sideways glance, "You can pay for it." She grins. Cathal groans quietly, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "The things I do for you, woman." The shopkeep is a tall man, thin but with admirably sculpted shoulders and arms. This is shown off by the black tank top he wears above the dark purple leather pants. A page-boy hair cut suits his fine features. He looks up at Cathal and his nose wrinkles. "Can I help you find something?" He asks, forcing a smile. Cathal swallows a couple of times, unable to quite answer that question. "Er...um...well I was...looking for..." He glances at Jest helplessly. Jest looks from Cathal to the shopkeep and then places a protective hand on Cathal's shoulder. She pats. "He's just starting to look, honey. A little... nervous about it." She says confidingly to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper looks at Cathal for a long moment. Cathal clears his throat, nodding a little. "Er, yes...s'been a long life not in touch with my...sexuality. I'm...not sure where to begin." Concealed from the shopkeepers view, one of his hands curls into a fist and pummels Jest's leg lightly. Jest pats his shoulder again. Smiling. "Perhaps if we could be allowed to just...roam?" The shopkeeper smiles, sympathy on his face, "Oh, it's okay. We all go through that. Well. Not me but..." He places his arm around Cathal's shoulder and appears to immediately regret it. "Urh... let's get you started. Don't worry, sweetie. You are in good hands. Now. Let's start with the basics, shall we?" He begins to try to steer Cathal towards the first row of tables, each displaying holo-vids with a few playing samples in a loop. The sound is off, luckily. Cathal looks over his shoulder at Jest as he is lead away, mouthing very clearly, 'I AM GOING TO KILL YOU.' He turns back to his guide, letting himself be lead around. He looks down at the screens, his eyes widening a little. "...is that gonna fit- guess so. Yeah...yeah that's..." Veteran of a hundred battles, the Lunite closes his eyes and summons his courage. "...hot." "I'll look over this way," Jest calls, "Just to see if there's anything I think you'd like." She offers Cathal and the shop-keep a little wave and starts at the other end. The shopkeeper smiles, "Yeah, that's Delving Deep IV. Pretty popular. Set on Ungstir." He gestures, "You've got your range here, its all organized. Race, mixed, bondage. The fetishes are down that way." He reaches forward, turns another loop on. "You seem like a big strong guy. This might be your style. Don't be afraid to turn them on, okay? Just go wild." Cathal takes it upon himself to distract the helpful shopkeep while Jest investigates, pointing at various screens and asking uncomfortable questions. "...so, like...what's that thing for?" "Uh...so is that -really- what a Zangali looks like nak- yeah let's go ahead and turn that one off...thanks." Several excruciating moments of this pass before he leans forward, peering at one of the Timonae speciality displays. "Huh, those two look kinda like...nah, couldn't be." Cathal may have been able to catch glimpses of Jest, poking about under the tables at first. But, for the last few minutes, there's been no sign at all. The shopkeeper answers Cathal's questions enthusiastically. With many helpful and instructive gestures. And tips. Cathal coughs at one of the aforementioned tips, "...really? And that works? Well that's uh...I definitely never pictured that." He steals a glance around the shop before focusing ruefully on another holovid. "...gee, sure is taking -a long time to find what I'm looking for-." It's a loaded comment if there ever was one. "What do you think of this, then? This more what you are looking for?" The shopkeeper gestures. The display seems to have at least three species and creative uses for additional appendages. They all seem quite in synch though. There's a flash of auburn, "Francis? We needed to meet Johnny. How about you talk to him about what you two might be interested in and you can come back, eh?" Jest waves to get the two's attention. Cathal nods enthusiastically, moving towards Jest and explaining as apologetically as he can to the shopkeeper, "...yeah, sorry, but like she said- I've got to go meet..." Cathal trails off, a small grin touching his lips. "Actually, fuck it." He turns around and marches back to the smut-peddler. "I'll skip all this basic stuff, if ya please. Gimme yer worst. I want the darkest, kinkiest, most vile holovid this place 'as ever carried. I've waited long enough, there ain't no sense taking it slow. I...yeah, I definitely don't even need to see it first. The surprise is the fun part, right? Heh heh, yeah, and could I get it wrapped up?" The shopkeeper frowns slightly, "You sure sweetie? I mean... that sort of thing is...." Jest starts to slowly smile, crossing her arms over her chest. Cathal fishes out some credits, nodding matter of factly and grinning a little. "Oh I'm sure alright. Bring it on, brother." The shop keeper beams at him, "Oh! Great! Let me get that for you." He turns and does not go to the tables. No, the man ends up going back behind the register. The box he brings out has a black wrap around it, but the bits of anatomy that show beyond the band are telling enough. He hands it to Cathal and holds out his hands for the credits, "Thirty-five." Jest stays right where she is and bites her lower lip. "Bargain!" Cathal declares, more than a little gleeful about his purchase. "Thank you, really. Very helpful. Gotta rush off though, got those folks to meet." He passes over the credits and stuffs the holovid into an inside pocket of his jacket. He spins about, tramping off and attempting to seize Jest by the arm and steer her out just as quickly. He hisses under his breath, "What are -you- smiling at, woman?" "Not a thing," Jest says, then pauses a beat, "Sweetie." She laughs softly. Cathal grunts, but his smile is pure serenity. "Yeah, keep laughin'. We'll see who's crackin' up when I give Aadzrian the present you just bought him, -Sweetie-." Jest stares at Cathal, "He'll never believe it." She says flatly, but she's starting to grin. She tugs at him, "Back to the ship now? Quick as Quick can?" Cathal picks up the pace a little, but his grin remains fully intact, "You don't think so? You ask yerself, which of us do ya think he'd more likely 'spect to get that kinda video from, huh? Damn...I shoulda gotten a card to go with it. Somethin' like...'For all the things I wanted to do with you, but never got the chance'. Touchin', right?" Jest tries to elbow him, "Cathal! Come on. I had to deal with that boy-toy grabbing my tits." She is lying, of course. But perhaps he won't realize that. "I had to sacrifice tooo." She whines. Cathal takes the elbow gladly, laughing harshly. "And now yer gonna have to sacrifice jus' a liiittle bit more. Besides, ain't no sacrifice to give a gift to a dear friend." Jest whimpers and gives him her very best entreating eyes. "You hate me. Why do you hate me?" She pouts. "'Cause it's so. Damn. Fun." A patented Cathal wink follows the explanation. '''Landing Field - Shadowheart --- :Once upon a time, a crimelord named Boss Cabrerra built the domed city of Shadowheart. Starships entered through a series of atmospheric locks in the upper hemisphere of the dome and landed atop a framework structure called the landing aerie. Visitors would then ride Cabrerra Industries shuttles from the aerie to the spaceport. More than 1,000 feet tall, the aerie was the tallest structure within the cityscape. And then, in the year 3004, the domed city fell into disarray with the spread of the Nexus Curse plague and the destruction of Cabrerra Industries. The landing aerie toppled in an explosion after the destruction of Majordomo Grim - the right hand of the Kamir. A 100 yard by 100 yard square patch of concrete has been laid out, a recent refurbishment, designated strips for landing ships visible from space by blinking warning lights. Settled about the landing pad is solid, iron towers with the shadow of snipers. Though the ruins still circle the establishment, nascent physical organization has begun here. --- "If I kick your ass in a fight, will you reconsider?" Jest grins. Cathal makes it to the pad, doubling over and resting his hands on his knees. "Not a chance. This is way too juicy." Jest snorts, "He won't believe it anyway." She doesn't sound entirely certain. Cathal straightens up, catching his breath. "Well then, you don't got nothin' to worry about, little lady." Jest starts for the ship, "So. If I flash you, will you take a shower?" She asks with a sigh. Cathal grins a little, following, "Maybe, but only if I get to bring my holovid in with me. I ain't leaving that anywhere you can get at it." Jest chuckles, "What do I need to do to make it a yes, then?" She pulls on the hatch and yawns. Cathal says, "You don't wanna know, woman." The dirty old man waits for his turn to enter the ship, leaving room for Jest to go first." Jest looks over her shoulder at him and inhales. She makes a face, "Darling. Believe me. I do." ---- Return to the year 3008. Category: Classic Underworld logs Category:Classic OtherSpace Logs